More arrests in crackdown on Thailand protests

Thai police arrested a rapper and several pro-democracy activists in a crackdown on growing protests that have emerged as the most serious threat to the government led by a former army general they accuse of incompetence and corruption.

Among those arrested is Dechathorn Bamrungmuang, a key member of Rap Against Dictatorship.

He posted photos Thursday on his Facebook page of being taken to a police station for processing.

One of the activists who allegedly made critical remarks, Arnon Nampha, was arrested Wednesday and charged with sedition and violation of a public assembly law for participating in a Harry Potter-themed protest on Aug. 3.

Three other political and labor activists - Baramee Chairat of Assembly of the Poor, political activist Korakot Saengyenpan and labor activist Suwanna Tanlek, were also arrested Wednesday, according to the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.

They were charged with sedition and other offenses related to a protest in July.

All four arrested yesterday were brought to the Bangkok criminal court on Thursday morning.

The activists facing sedition charges have called on Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and his administration to resign. The protests, fanned by thousands of students, are the most serious threat yet to an ex-army chief who seized power in the 2014 military coup and then retained it in a 2019 election widely seen as rigged to guarantee his victory.

With key Cabinet posts still in the hands of former generals, the opposition to the military's continuing influence and Prayuth's leadership has grown louder.

The protests have declared three core demands: holding new elections, amending the military-imposed constitution and ending the intimidation of critics of the government.

Protest leaders triggered controversy earlier this month when they expanded their original agenda, publicly criticizing Thailand's constitutional monarchy and issuing a 10-point manifesto calling for its reform.

Their action was virtually unprecedented, as the monarchy is considered sacrosanct and any criticism is normally kept private.

A lese majeste law calls for a prison sentence of up to 15 years for anyone found guilty of defaming the king.

The administration's image has been tarnished by corruption scandals for which no one has been held accountable.

The economy also has struggled to compete with its neighbors, even before the heavy damage inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic, which ravaged the tourism industry, the top foreign currency earner.